Staying Home Sucks, home
Beach Scene - Zipolite - Oaxaca - Mexico - 07
Zipolite. Photo: Adam Jones from Kelowna, BC, Canada, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Zipolite

Surf spot · Mexico

Is it worth the trip?

57Fair out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Fri 6: 4 ft swell at 11 s

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 57 out of 100

Swell
6 ft12 sslab
Energy
764kJ
Wind
E 8 kn
Temp
28°C

Tue 3 · 59 out of 100

Swell
5 ft11 sslab
Energy
674kJ
Wind
ESE 3 kn
Temp
28°C

Wed 4 · 59 out of 100

Swell
5 ft11 sslab
Energy
542kJ
Wind
E 4 kn
Temp
28°C

Thu 5 · 56 out of 100

Swell
5 ft11 shollow
Energy
474kJ
Wind
NE 0 kn
Temp
29°C

Fri 6 · 66 out of 100

Swell
4 ft11 shollow
Energy
313kJ
Wind
ESE 7 kn
Temp
28°C

Sat 7 · 44 out of 100

Swell
3 ft10 shollow
Energy
166kJ
Wind
S 4 kn
Temp
29°C

Sun 8 · 33 out of 100

Swell
2 ft14 shollow
Energy
121kJ
Wind
SE 4 kn
Temp
29°C

Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 162, good
  2. Mon 257, fair
  3. Tue 359, fair
  4. Wed 459, fair
  5. Thu 556, fair
  6. Fri 666, good
  7. Sat 744, poor
  8. Sun 833, too small
  9. Mon 929, too small
  10. Tue 1026, too small

The spot in six facts

  • Faces Stakes swell from the S
  • Offshore: Nwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 2–8 ftof swell
  • Water 30 °Cno wetsuit
  • Best in Nov6 good days in 7

Full forecast

every day, every number

The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Zipolite, each day
DayScore for intermediatesSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov62, good5 ft12 sslab8 ft at break (est.)818kJwind from the north-north-west, 0 knots, offshore29°C
Mon 2Nov57, fair6 ft12 sslab8 ft at break (est.)764kJwind from the east, 8 knots28°C
Tue 3Nov59, fair5 ft11 sslab7 ft at break (est.)674kJwind from the east-south-east, 3 knots28°C
Wed 4Nov59, fair5 ft11 sslab7 ft at break (est.)542kJwind from the east, 4 knots28°C
Thu 5Nov56, fair5 ft11 shollow7 ft at break (est.)474kJwind from the north-east, 0 knots29°C
Fri 6Nov66, good4 ft11 shollow6 ft at break (est.)313kJwind from the east-south-east, 7 knots28°C
Sat 7Nov44, poor3 ft10 shollow5 ft at break (est.)166kJwind from the south, 4 knots29°C
Sun 8Nov33, too small2 ft14 shollow3 ft at break (est.)121kJwind from the south-east, 4 knots29°C
Mon 9Nov29, too small2 ft13 shollow4 ft at break (est.)128kJwind from the south, 6 knots29°C
Tue 10Nov26, too small2 ft12 shollow3 ft at break (est.)95kJwind from the south, 6 knots29°C

Energy is the swell's power, in kJ per metre of wave. Wind is in knots, the arrow where it blows to; green is offshore. More

Tide

  • Sun 1 NovLow 00:29 −0.6 mHigh 06:57 +0.7 mLow 13:19 −0.5 mHigh 19:24 +0.5 m
  • Mon 2 NovLow 01:26 −0.5 mHigh 07:50 +0.6 mLow 14:10 −0.5 mHigh 20:22 +0.5 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 02:28 −0.5 mHigh 08:47 +0.5 mLow 15:04 −0.5 mHigh 21:25 +0.5 m

Local clock times; heights about mean sea level. On open coasts the times are usually within a quarter of an hour; in bays, estuaries and on the Gulf of Mexico they can be an hour or more out. Tide: EOT20 global ocean tide model, Hart-Davis et al. 2021, DGFI-TUM (doi:10.17882/79489), CC BY 4.0. Times and heights computed by us. A model, not a tide table: check a local table before you go.

Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.

Map

the spot, its town, photos

Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for intermediates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Photos of Zipolite

Beach Scene with Hammocks - Zipolite - Oaxaca - Mexico
Photo: Adam Jones from Kelowna, BC, Canada, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
DuskZipolite
Photo: AlejandroLinaresGarcia, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
ZipBeachWest
Photo: AlejandroLinaresGarcia, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

More surf near here

2 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Zipolite

Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.

The spot faces S (183°), so it takes swell from the S. The wind blows offshore from the N (3°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up, because of a steep sea floor. It works in 2–8 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very steeply: 10 m deep about 50 m out (1 in 3). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hard and thick, like a slab. The sea is about 28°C in January, its coldest month (no wetsuit), and 30°C in May, its warmest (no wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best month is usually November, with about 6 good days in 7; in May and June, about 3. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Zipolite, 0.5 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot.

Water about 30°C: no wetsuit. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).

Rough cost (estimate): about US$824–US$1,510 each

about US$824–US$1,510 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food, board and wetsuit.

Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn MDW to HUX, estimated from distance and season, changing at DFW, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$261–US$543
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$94–US$154
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$181–US$295
Food7 days eating outabout US$201–US$375
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$87–US$141
Totalabout US$824–US$1,510

For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: 3 towns

Closest

Zipolite

1 min by car · 96 places to stay

about US$67/nightcountry average

See 96 places to stay in Zipolite · Booking.com

About Zipolite its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$67 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

Getting there: about 12h 25m

About 12h 25m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → HUX, changing at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), then 50 min by road

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.